Opposition MPs denied access to Vanni internment camps

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 June 2009, 11:36 GMT]“Sri Lanka government has not yet permitted the opposition parliamentarians to see the Tamil civilians held in the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) camps in Vavuniyaa in order to learn of their problems and help them,” Gayantha Karunathilaka, United National Party (UNP) media spokesman, said in a press meet held Wednesday at the office of the leader of the opposition in Colombo.

“Even media reporters are not permitted to visit the civilians held in Vavuniyaa internment camps who face various hardships including lack of basic health and medical facilities. Sixty of them have died during the last few days,” Karunathilaka pointed out.

“We do not want to do politics by exposing the problems of the Tamil detainees but are trying to expose the truth and to say that the government is not looking after them as they should be," he said.

“The detainees are confined to the camps being denied their freedom of movement; they are forced to live in small tents. Parliamentarians in the opposition should be permitted to meet the Tamil detainees,” he added.